I know many of you probably have questions around whether coaches will have the opportunity to get the required training and certification for provincials and post-provincial championships should they all go ahead this year. There has been a ton of uncertainty around this not only in Alberta, but all across Canada. Because of this, Softball Alberta, the Western Softball Association and Softball Canada have all individually approved an adjusted set of coaching requirements that will apply to 2021 Championships ONLY. Please see below for the new set of requirements:
| Provincials: |
| For non-post provincial categories one of the coaches on the roster must have the following NCCP status:
Community Softball Trained with MED evaluation complete
Coaches who do not have this status must complete the 2 steps below: 1. Foundations of Coaching Softball (FOCS) Part 1 2. Make Ethical Decisions (MED) Online Evaluation
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| For post provincial categories one of the coaches on the roster must have the following NCCP status:
Comp Intro Trained with MED evaluation completed or Comp Intro Certified
Coaches who are neither of these 2 statuses will have to complete the 3 steps below: 1. Foundations of Coaching Softball (FOCS) Part 1 2. Foundations of Coaching Softball (FOCS) Part 2 3. Make Ethical Decisions (MED) Online Evaluation
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| For all minor categories, teams must still have a coach of the same gender as the team who has completed the MED Online Evaluation (Softball Alberta Handbook Article III, Section F, 2c.) |
| Westerns & Canadians: |
| Head and Assistant Coaches will be eligible to participate if they have the following NCCP status:
Comp Intro Trained with MED evaluation completed or Comp Intro Certified
Coaches who are neither of these 2 statuses will have to complete the 3 steps below: 1. Foundations of Coaching Softball (FOCS) Part 1 2. Foundations of Coaching Softball (FOCS) Part 2 3. Make Ethical Decisions (MED) Online Evaluation
If a coach does not meet any of the above standards, they can be on the OPL but cannot go on the field or in the coach’s box during the game.
* Only one coach will need the above certification for participation in Western Championships. |
Coaches are encouraged to take the Make Ethical Decisions Online Workshop (through SPAR) before proceeding to the MED Online Evaluation. If coaches proceed straight to the evaluation, some questions will be very difficult to answer as the coach will have no background information. Proceeding straight to evaluation will be a cost of $85 with only 2 attempts to successfully pass the evaluation by scoring 75% or higher. Completing the MED course beforehand will allow free access to the evaluation with unlimited attempts at passing.
To find more information and a link to complete FOCS Part 1 and 2 follow this link: https://softball.ca/onlinelearning/foundations
To find when the MED course will be offered by Alberta Sport follow this link: https://albertasport.ca/nccp-module-calendar/. This is a 4 hour online course in which coaches will learn the material that the MED Online Evaluation tests on. Taking this online course will benefit coaches by making the online evaluation content much more familiar and coaches will have it complete for when they eventually would have to take it as part of the Comp Intro pathway to certification. Softball Canada is at the beginning stages of transitioning to a new format for NCCP clinics in which MED will be deintegrated - meaning coaches will have to take the MED separately from the softball specific course going forward.